2008 edition - Fort Sam Houston - U.S. Army

PART V
NONJUDICIAL PUNISHMENT PROCEDURE
1. General
a. Authority. Nonjudicial punishment in the United
States Armed Forces is authorized by Article 15.
b. Nature. Nonjudicial punishment is a disciplinary
measure more serious than the administrative corrective
measures discussed in paragraph 1g, but less
serious than trial by court-martial.
c. Purpose. Nonjudicial punishment provides comm
a n d e r s w i t h a n e s s e n t i a l a n d p r o m p t m e a n s o f
m a i n t a i n i n g g o o d o r d e r a n d d i s c i p l i n e a n d a l s o
promotes positive behavior changes in servicememb
e r s w i t h o u t t h e s t i g m a o f a c o u r t - m a r t i a l
conviction.
d. Policy.
(1) Commander’s responsibility. Commanders are
responsible for good order and discipline in their
commands. Generally, discipline can be maintained
through effective leadership including, when necessary,
administrative corrective measures. Nonjudicial
punishment is ordinarily appropriate when administrative
corrective measures are inadequate due to the
nature of the minor offense or the record of the
servicemember, unless it is clear that only trial by
court-martial will meet the needs of justice and discipline.
Nonjudicial punishment shall be considered
o n a n i n d i v i d u a l b a s i s . C o m m a n d e r s c o n s i d e r i n g
nonjudicial punishment should consider the nature of
the offense, the record of the servicemember, the
needs for good order and discipline, and the effect
of nonjudicial punishment on the servicemember and
the servicemember’s record.
(2) Commander’s discretion. A commander who
is considering a case for disposition under Article 15
will exercise personal discretion in evaluating each
case, both as to whether nonjudicial punishment is
appropriate, and, if so, as to the nature and amount
of punishment appropriate. No superior may direct
that a subordinate authority impose nonjudicial punishment
in a particular case, issue regulations, ord
e r s , o r “ g u i d e s ” w h i c h s u g g e s t t o s u b o r d i n a t e
authorities that certain categories of minor offenses
be disposed of by nonjudicial punishment instead of
by court-martial or administrative corrective measures,
or that predetermined kinds or amounts of punishments
be imposed for certain classifications of
offenses that the subordinate considers appropriate
for disposition by nonjudicial punishment.
( 3 ) C o m m a n d e r ’ s s u s p e n s i o n a u t h o r i t y . C o m -
manders should consider suspending all or part of
any punishment selected under Article 15, particularly
in the case of first offenders or when significant
extenuating or mitigating matters are present.
Suspension provides an incentive to the offender and
gives an opportunity to the commander to evaluate
the offender during the period of suspension.
e. Minor offenses. Nonjudicial punishment may be
imposed for acts or omissions that are minor off
e n s e s u n d e r t h e p u n i t i v e a r t i c l e s ( s e e P a r t I V ) .
Whether an offense is minor depends on several
factors: the nature of the offense and the circumstances
surrounding its commission; the offender’s
age, rank, duty assignment, record and experience;
and the maximum sentence imposable for the offense
if tried by general court-martial. Ordinarily, a
minor offense is an offense which the maximum
sentence imposable would not include a dishonorable
discharge or confinement for longer than 1 year
i f t r i e d b y g e n e r a l c o u r t - m a r t i a l . T h e d e c i s i o n
whether an offense is “minor” is a matter of discretion
for the commander imposing nonjudicial punishment,
but nonjudicial punishment for an offense
other than a minor offense (even though thought by
the commander to be minor) is not a bar to trial by
c o u r t - m a r t i a l f o r t h e s a m e o f f e n s e . S e e R . C . M .
907(b)(2)(D)(iv). However, the accused may show at
trial that nonjudicial punishment was imposed, and
if the accused does so, this fact must be considered
in determining an appropriate sentence. See Article
15(f); R.C.M. 1001(c)(1)(B).
f. Limitations on nonjudicial punishment.
( 1 ) D o u b l e p u n i s h m e n t p r o h i b i t e d . W h e n n o n -
judicial punishment has been imposed for an offense,
punishment may not again be imposed for the
same offense under Article 15. But see paragraph 1e
concerning trial by court-martial.
(2) Increase in punishment prohibited. Once nonjudicial
punishment has been imposed, it may not be
increased, upon appeal or otherwise.
(3) Multiple punishment prohibited. When a commander
determines that nonjudicial punishment is
a p p r o p r i a t e f o r a p a r t i c u l a r s e r v i c e m e m b e r , a l l
known offenses determined to be appropriate for disposition
by nonjudicial punishment and ready to be
considered at that time, including all such offenses
arising from a single incident or course of conduct,
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